Brass musical instruments have been in existence for hundreds of years. Brass instruments may be found in a large variety of shapes and sizes with the most common being the trumpet, trombone, cornet, tuba, french horn, etc. A musician creates sound on a brass instrument by using his own lips in combination with the mouthpiece as the resonator, while the shape of the instrument acts as an amplifier creating the desired sound. The speed of the musician's lip vibration combined with the shape of the horn creates the different pitches available with the brass instrument. In addition, the keys of the brass instrument (or in the case of a trombone, the sliding piece) serve to modify the horn chamber in such a way as to alter the pitch of the sound.
The mouthpieces of most brass instruments are generally the same shape, although they vary in size depending upon the size of the horn. A brass instrument mouthpiece is somewhat conical in shape having a round or opening where the musician's lips are placed and then narrowing down to a small stem that enters the horn. The shape of the mouthpiece helps create the initial vibration that is then amplified by the instrument. The musician's lip vibration combined with the mouthpiece shape creates the initial resonance that creates sound.
Many volumes of literature have been written about the proper use of the lips to create the desired vibration for brass instruments. For example, Risen Publishing produces a book entitled Ultimate Position which describes the well-known Stevens/Costello method of positioning the embouchure muscles to provide the most consistent lip vibration for obtaining the desired pitch for a trumpet. Similar use of the embouchure muscles is necessary for other brass instruments. Many other books, pamphlets, and teaching aids discuss the proper positioning of the embouchure muscles to obtain the desired lip vibration for playing a brass instrument.
One common problem that beginning musicians encounter is a lack of strength in the embouchure muscles, particularly those muscles supporting the upper lip. This lack of strength translates into an inability to create the desired lip vibration. Many beginning musicians compensate for this lack of strength by increasing the pressure of the mouthpiece against the lips, which in turn enables them to achieve better lip vibration. However, this excessive mouthpiece pressure leads to lip numbing and related problems that severely limit the amount of time that the musician can play his instrument. In addition, the excessive mouthpiece pressure will inhibit the proper development of the embouchure muscles which in turn will limit the musician's ability.
With conscientious practice, the musician will learn to substitute air pressure and muscular resistance for mouthpiece pressure in order to increase the speed of the lip vibrations. So as not to choke off the air column on a high, fast, and narrow vibration, there is a point at which the mouthpiece pressure must cease, while air and muscular tension increase to create the desired vibration. The lips cannot defend themselves against heavy mouthpiece weight unless they are properly trained to work without mouthpiece pressure. If a musician continually practices with the improper mouthpiece pressure, then the embouchure muscles will never develop properly.
Until the development of the present invention, there has been no way for an instructor to prevent a pupil from exerting excessive pressure with the mouthpiece with the exception of watching the pupil play and keeping a wary eye for improper technique. Of course, once the student is left to practice on his own nothing other than the student's own initiative will ensure that proper embouchure muscles are utilized. The training of a musician's embouchure muscles would be greatly enhanced if a device existed that would prevent the musician from applying excess pressure with the mouthpiece, while still allowing for normal play of the instrument.
Thus there is a need for a device that may will enable a musician to properly play a brass instrument, while preventing the musician from creating excessive pressure between the mouthpiece of the instrument and the musician's lips.